


Wooden Blocks

by Olol



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, doctorSakura, singledadMinato
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-23
Updated: 2020-11-01
Packaged: 2021-03-07 03:07:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,971
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26069941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Olol/pseuds/Olol
Summary: Minato never imagined he would be raising little Naruto on his own. Kushina had found the perfect pediatrician for Naruto. She didn't realize she would be finding the perfect person for Minato as well.
Relationships: Haruno Sakura/Namikaze Minato
Comments: 44
Kudos: 166





	1. the first well child check

**Author's Note:**

> This is for the lovely peeps in the Haruno Sakura discord. They asked for a single dad Minato and Pediatrician Sakura, so I decided to give it to her. 
> 
> Please enjoy

Minato sat in the waiting room. Naruto bouncing on his lap. Since his son was born nothing was like how Minato pictured it. Kushina was supposed to be by his side. Naruto was supposed to be born healthy, not premature. Minato thought back to that night. 

Kushina had woken with severe abdominal pain and bleeding. She was 31 weeks along with their son. Minato had never jumped out of bed so fast. He didn’t care about all the laws he broke getting Kushina to the emergency department. It was all a whirlwind after that. She was immediately rushed to the OR for an emergency c-section. Placental abruption. He had never heard of it before, but he will never forget what took his wife away from him. She lost too much blood and didn’t get to see their son take his first breath. 

Little Naruto had a rough course in the neonatal intensive care unit, NICU. He was there for over 2 months. Minato remembers the breathing tube tapped to his face after he was born. His lungs were underdeveloped. Due to the emergency situation Kushina wasn’t able to get the course of steroids before he was born. Steroids that would have helped his lungs. However, every day Naruto got stronger and stronger. It was like Kushina was helping him, giving him her strength. They were discharged with a large farewell from the staff. 

Now Minato sat in the pediatrician's waiting room waiting for Naruto’s first appointment. Thankfully Naruto was able to be weaned off his oxygen before they went home. Minato found himself not sleeping at night, concerned if anything would happen to Naruto. Minato wanted to be ready. He started to doze off for a second as he was sitting up. It wouldn’t hurt if he shut his eyes for a few seconds. 

Minato didn’t know how long his eyes were closed, but nearly jumped out of his seat when he heard a shrill voice. 

“Uzamaki Naruto.” Naruto started to cry. Minato quickly went to soothe his son as he gathered their things. He was so focused on his son, he didn’t notice all the eyes on him from the women in the office. 

“Shh Shh. It will be alright little one. Come on don’t cry.” Minato kept his voice as soft and calm as possible. He made his way to the door with the nurse. Soon they were rushed back to get Naruto’s weight, length, and head circumference. The almost calmed Naruto started crying tenfold compared to earlier. The cold wooden board and scale must have been torture for the naked baby. 

After the measuring, Minato swaddled Naruto in his blanket, decorated in bowels of ramen. He would dress him once they got to the room. The exam room was brightly colored with child geared toys decorating the walls. Naruto will love playing with those when he gets older. A sting shot through Minato’s heart, just one more thing he will do alone. 

“Dr. Haruno will be with you shortly. Please just leave him only in his diaper for the exam.” And just like that Minato was alone with Naruto again. He could do this. Minato just stared down at his son, his face looked so much like Kushina. Kushina had found this office a week before Naruto was born. 

_ “Oh Minato, you will not believe the pediatrician I found. She has been out of training for 2 years. Do you know she trained under Dr. Tsunade Senju! All of the moms at the mommy to be class raved about her! We will need to schedule an appointment to meet with her closer to the due date. Oh I just can’t wait.”  _

This office had Kushina’s seal of approval and that was good enough for Minato. As he waited he took time to fill out more of the developmental forms. Naruto had finally calmed down and was starting to sleep cradled against his chest. 

“Hello. I’m Dr. Haruno. This little guy must be Naruto and you must be his father, Mr. Uzamaki. “ Her voice was sing song, that was the first thing he noticed. When he looked up he was flabbergasted at the young Doctor. Her cascading cotton candy locks fell to her mid back. She had sparking emerald eyes that looked full of kindness. He thought about how she looked and how children must be in awe of her. She extended her hand out for him to shake. He took note of her smooth hands. 

“Yes this is Naruto. I’m Minato Namikaze, Nartuo’s father.” Her grip was strong. Minato wanted Naruto to carry part of Kushina with him for life, so he gave Naruto her surname. 

“Oh sorry about that Mr. Namikaze. Let’s start with any questions or concerns for little Naruto since leaving the NICU.” He was pulled out of his daydreaming with her question. 

“He doesn’t sleep through the night yet and coughs when he is laying down.” Naruto was zonked out. Unlike the nurse’s voice Dr. Haruno’s didn’t seem to hurt his ears. 

“Let’s see little Naruto is 3 months old, so we wouldn’t expect him to sleep through the night until 6 months of age. However every child is different so he may do it sooner or even when he is older.” Dr. Haruno smiled as she looked at Naruto. 

“Now this coughing does it happen every time he is laying down?” Minato shifted in his seat to look at her better when they talked. The jostling around caused Naruto to wake up and start crying. Before he could do anything Dr. Haruno spoke. 

“You have your hands full. Let me take him for a little.” Minato could only watch as Naruto was taken from his arms. This was the first time someone other than Minato had held Naruto outside of the NICU. Anxiety filled Minato’s veins. Naruto quickly quieted down with the coos from Dr. Haruno. Minato didn’t think it was fair she could calm his son so quickly. 

“It is mainly at night. The NICU talked about keeping him upright after feeding and burping him frequently to help with reflux.” Minato made sure to follow all the advice he had gotten before leaving the hospital. He kept a notebook in his work bag and referred to it multiple times a day. 

“Does he spit up excessively or seemed bothered by it?” Dr. Haruno didn’t even bother to look at Minato. 

“He spits up a little, nothing excessive. He never seems bothered by it.” Naruto cold guzzle formula like a champ. 

“That’s good. I was reading that he was placed on flovent for his chronic lung disease of prematurity. How often is he getting it?” 

“I give it to him once a day in the morning. He was on it twice a day, but I was told he could be weaned down since he was doing so well.” Minato wanted to reach into his bag and look at the paperwork. He was now worried he was doing something wrong. 

“How many puffs does he get in the morning?” 

“Two. I give it to him every morning with the spacer we left the NICU with.”

“Perfect. How about you try giving him one puff twice a day. That way he will get the same dose, but having part of it at night should help with any inflammation in his lungs. Splitting the dose will help give him a more consistent level of medicine in his lungs. Has he had any fevers, runny nose, congestion?” 

“No.” 

“Will he be going to daycare or staying home?” Dr. Haruno had started to walk over to the exam table. She delicately placed Naruto on the table, after she laid out his blanket. 

“He will be starting daycare next week when I have to go back to work.” After his wife’s death he was able to take some time off to be with Naruto. He was able to go back part time when Naruto was still in the NICU, but he took a couple of weeks off after he was discharged. He wanted time to settle Naruto in before starting back up at work and putting Naruto in daycare. 

Minato watched as Dr. Haruno checked Naruto over. Naruto looked memorized by the doctor. 

“Just to go over some general cares. Most children in their first year of life can have 10-13 viral illnesses, making it seem like they are sick all the time. Naruto should still go to daycare, but he may have a tendency to catch a cold easily. If that comes up and you have any concerns bring him in or call into the office. We don’t have to do any vaccines today, but he will need his second round at 4 months of age. I recommend having him come in at that time for another check up. Let me give you our card with the office hours and contact numbers. We do have doctors on call at night if any questions or concerns arise. It would either be me or one of the other 3 pediatricians who work in the office.” Minato took the card and placed it in his bag. He made sure to take a picture of it to save on his phone as well. 

“Well I must say you have a beautiful baby boy. I look forward to seeing him in a month. Please let us know if anything comes up in the meantime.” Dr. Haruno wrapped Naruto back up in his blanket, her swaddle was so perfect he was jealous. 

“Thank you Dr. Haruno. We will be seeing you again in a month.” Her smile made him melt before she bid them goodby and left. 

Minato sat in the exam room for a moment. He could do this. At least they had an emergency contact number for the nights. He hoped he didn’t need to use it to much. 

________________

Sakura stepped out of the exam room and sighed. She felt sorry for little Naruto and his father. She had heard from Hinata about their story. Hinata was one of the neonatologists who took care of Naruto in the NICU. She wanted to reprimand the nurses for their giggles about how attractive Mr. Namikaze was. 

Sakura moved from exam room to exam room. She got coughed on by 3 patients, almost punched in the face by a 3 year old, and a teenager cursing at her. She was ready for the day to be over. Checking her watch she realized she would have to go home soon to get ready for her date. Ino had decided to set her up with a blind date, which Sakura begrudgingly agreed to. She checked her in-basket one more time before heading out. 

_______________

Sakura sat nervously at the front of the restaurant. Her date was 20 minutes late. What if they stood her up? She knew this was a bad idea. 

“Sakura?” A deep baritone voice brought her out of her thoughts. She looked up to see one of the most gorgeous men in her life. 

“Yes. You must be Kakashi.” Kakashi gave her a dazzling smile. 

“Sorry I’m late. I got held up at the office.” He was the second most gorgeous man she had seen today. Kakashi offered his hand as she stood up, which she easily took. 

  
  


“No problem. What do you do?” Sakura couldn’t help but ask. Ino had told her almost nothing about this blind date. The only fact Ino found important was that Kakashi was tall and handsome. 

“I am an architect. My boss wanted to go over one of the new accounts this afternoon. He has been off for family matters.” They easily fell into a conversation. 

As their date winded down to a close, Sakura's phone went off. 

“Sorry I have to take this. I am on call this week.” Sakura felt bad as she went outside. Kakashi gave her an understanding nod. 

“Mr. Namikaze is everything alright?” Sakura could tell it was going to be a long first year of Naruto’s life. 


	2. 4 month well child check

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sakura continues to get to know Kakashi. Minato adjusts to his life as a single father.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is chapter two. The story will start to slowly pick up after this, but may be more of a slow burn (at least as slow as I can make) . Let me know what you think :)

“Mr. Namikaze is everything alright?” Sakura didn’t know what trouble little Naruto could get into in the eight hours since he had seen him in the office. 

“Sorry to bother you Dr. Haruno, but it’s Naruto. He has this rash on his chest that just popped out of nowhere. I don’t know what to do.” Minato sounded panicked on the phone. 

“Can you describe the rash for me?” Sakura could hear him fumbling about with the phone. 

“It’s red and gooey looking. There are other redder areas around it.” At least he was doing better than most at describing the rash. She was perplexed how such a rash could just pop up. 

“Is it tender when you touch it?” Minato told her to wait a second. 

“Oh...Oh… It smells like pizza sauce. Oh.” Smelling like pizza sauce that was something Sakura had never heard of before. 

“Dr. Haruno I’m sorry to waste your time. I forgot one of my old mentors was watching Naruto this afternoon so I could go into work for a few hours. He must have gotten pizza sauce on Naruto when he was eating. My mentor even sent a picture of Naruto on his lap as he ate the pizza.” Minato felt like a complete and total idiot. He just freaked out when he saw red that he didn’t pay close enough attention. 

“It’s ok Mr. Namikaze. I’m glad it is just pizza sauce. I do recommend a good sponge bath for little Naruto. Did you have any other questions?” Sakura had to stifle her laughter as she talked to him. First time parents. She then paused. He was a first time single father, he must be a nervous wreck going at this all alone.

“No. No other questions.” Minato sounded like a defeated puppy. 

“Mr. Namikaze please don’t feel bad about calling. I would rather you can when you have a concern. You don’t know what something is or what is going on unless you ask. They didn’t give you a pamphlet on how to raise a child. So please don’t ever hesitate to call. Have a good night.” Sakura hung up the phone and took a deep breath. She felt fabric being draped over her shoulders. 

“I thought you would need a jacket. It gets chilly once the sun sets.” Sakura found Kakashi’s coat on her. Her heart was warmed by the kind gesture. 

“That is very considerate of you. Thank you.” Kakashi walked Sakura to her car. As she unlocked her doors she gave Kakashi’s jacket back to him. She couldn’t help herself when she placed a kiss on his cheek. 

“Thank you for dinner.” Before she could get in the car his hand stopped her. 

“I had a nice evening. Could I get your number?” Sakura blushed. She gave Kakashi her number, applauding herself for not stuttering too much. 

“Have a good night Kakashi.” 

“You too Sakura.” Sakura sat in her car thinking back to her crazy day. She enjoyed her time with Kakashi, but wasn’t sure if she saw anything romantically happening with him. There was something that just wasn’t right. However, she would give it another try if he called her. 

_____________________

After Dr. Haruno hung up the phone Minato couldn’t help but to bang his head against his kitchen table. He was so worried when he saw the “rash” on Naruto he freaked out. He has never felt like more of an idiot in his life. 

Jiraya was kind enough to watch Naruto this afternoon. Minato was so nervous leaving, but he had to go into his office for a few hours. He had worked hard over the years building his architect firm and they were getting a proposal ready for a big bank. He knew he could trust Obito and Kakashi with the deal, but he wanted to make sure everything was immaculate. 

_ The trio had worked so hard they didn’t realize it was 7pm. Kakashi had to make a quick exit, saying something about a blind date. That left him and Obito together. Obito decided to order food stating that he “needed a break.” Minato couldn’t protest because before he knew it Obito had already placed an order for burgers and fries.  _

_ “The order will be here in 20 minutes. I know you want to get back to Naruto, but he is in good hands with Jiraiya. Sit down and rest for a little bit.” While Obito tended to be the more easy going jokester between them. He also cared deeply for his friends and family.  _

_ “You’re right. Now tell me how are you going to propose to Rin?” Minato laughed as Obito stammered. He may have been preoccupied in the last few months, but he knew Obito was going to propose soon.  _

_ “Who told you? The only other one who knows is ...Kakashi told you!” Obito had jumped up and pointed a finger at Minato. For a man in his early 30s Obito was still a kid at heart.  _

_ “Kakashi visited just before Naruto was discharged. He wanted to get my mind off of things and told me. Don’t get too mad at him.” While Kakashi shouldn’t have told Minato it did bring his mind out of a dark place. He had something to look forward to. Obito was taking a big step in his life and he needed to be by his side.  _

_ “By the way Rin said she would be open to babysit anytime you need her.”  _

Minato might just take RIn up on her offer, at some point. He shook his head, not now of course. Minato went over the sink to make a bath for Naruto. He didn’t feel like messing with the tube and the baby seat. When he went to the bathroom to get the baby body wash, towel, and washcloth, he stopped. He stared at the small rubber duck holding a bowl of ramen. Minato carefully picked it up and took it with him. 

He checked the water with his hand before placing Naruto in. As the warm water hit his skin Naruto started to giggle. The smile he gave could melt the hardest of men. It reminded him of Kushina. He would not let the tears fall. 

Minato wrapped Naruto in his towel. He made sure every little bit of pizza sauce was off of him. He placed Naruto in the bassinet next to his bed. He fell fast asleep. Minato crawled into bed and watched the rise and fall of Naruto’s chest. He slowly drifted to sleep. 

_________________________

It had been a week since Sakura heard from Minato last. She was surprised she didn’t get any more calls, but hoped he was settling in. 

Sakura had a jammed packed schedule for the day. They had double booked her in 4 different times spots meaning she would not have lunch. She really liked lunch...well food in general. She was hoping for some no shows. While she adored all her patients she might lose her sanity at the end of the day. 

She looked at her schedule and at least she started with one of her favorites. 

“Shikadai! How is my favorite 2 year old doing?” When she saw that bright smile spread across his face her day instantly brightened. For the next 3 hours Sakura flashed in and out of her exam rooms. The nurses would just see a flash of pink and then children’s laughter. She did get behind due to the scheduling errors, but the parents and children were understanding. For the most part at least. Her patient at 1145, was not so understanding, even though they were a walk in. 

“Hello you must be Miss Ami. I’m Dr. Haruno, sorry for your wait.” The little girl had short purple hair and brown eyes. Before Ami could speak her mother cut in. 

“We have been waiting for 30 minutes. My child has horrible abdominal pain and you place us in this room to wait.” Sakura had to take a deep breath. She did a quick glance of Ami who was sitting comfortably by her mother playing a game on the phone. No increased work of breathing, no pallor, no distress. At least the first glance Ami looked ok. 

“I’m sorry about Mrs.Yoshi. Can you tell me when the pain started?” 

“It has been going on for 3 weeks.” Sakura could not let her eye twitch externally. Three weeks! 

“And what changed with the pain today to bring her in?” Sakura kept her smile on her face. 

“It’s gotten worse and she had an accident at school.” Ami looked away from Sakura and tried to hide behind her mother. 

“Oh you poor thing. That must have been so hard for you. Was it a stool or urine accident?” 

“It was poop.” 

“How often does she have a bowel movement?” 

“Once every couple of days. She sometimes cries.” 

“Let me take a look over. Miss Ami can you get up on the table for me?” Ami dropped the phone and hopped up on the table with ease. No concerns for appendicitis at the moment. 

Sakura quickly looked over Ami. Making sure to feel on her stomach and ask where the pain was. Thankfully she did not have any localization to the right lower quadrant, but she did feel full. 

“Alright Mrs. Yoshi I want to get an Xray of Ami’s abdomen. At her age constipation is a common cause of abdominal pain. With the worsening of her pain I know it can be scary, but the location is not consistent with appendicitis. She also has not had any fevers and no nausea or vomiting, which is all reassuring. So Miss Ami let's get a picture of that tummy. Have you ever had an Xray done before?” Mrs. Yoshi seemed to have relaxed some. As she settled Ami and her mother into the waiting area she made her way back to her desk. She would have a few minutes to catch up on some notes and type up a summary for Ami. 

Fifteen minutes later she was bidding farewell to the duo. Mrs. Yoshi did apologize on the way out. 

“I know it’s scary when your child is in pain. This should get her to feeling better and I want to see her back in 1 month.” As she watched the mother and daughter leave her stomach roared like a lion. It was 1240 and she would not have time to get lunch. She prayed she had a granola bar in her bag. 

When Sakura got to her office she froze. 

“I thought I would surprise you with lunch. Hope you don’t mind. Ino told me where you worked.” 

Kakashi sat in her office with the most delicious smelling food. Warmth filled her. 

“That’s very kind of you and couldn’t have been on a better day. I wasn’t going to have time to get something to eat.” Sakura eagerly sat down. She didn’t even think as she took the box of stir fry from Kakashi and stuffed her face. She was so engrossed in her food she didn’t realize the mess she was making. Kakashi’s laugh brought her out of her food zone. 

“I’m glad you like the food.” Kakashi tried hard not to cringe. He was enjoying getting to know Sakura over the last week, but he just wasn’t sure. 

“Sorry. I was just so hungry. How is your day going so far?” Sakura tried to salvage her dignity as she cleaned her face off. 

“Good. My boss will be coming back to work next week, so everyone is frantic, but it will be nice to have him back. Do you have any plans for the weekend?” Sakura had to think. Today was Wednesday or was it Thursday? It really didn’t matter, she didn’t have anything planned. 

“No. I don’t have any plans.” 

“Would you be interested in going with me to an art gallery Saturday night?” Sakura wasn’t sure, but she promised Ino she would try. 

“Sure. Sounds like it could be fun.” Well at least it would get her out of her house. 

____________________________

Minato was settling into a rhythm with Naruto. He would wake up about two times during the night. No more coughing at night was music to Minato’s ears. Minato started taking Naruto to daycare for a couple hours out of the day. During those couple of hours he would work from home making sure everything was ready when he went back full time on Monday. 

It was currently 3pm on Friday and he was looking forward to his weekend with Naruto. He just had to finish up some paperwork. The ring of his phone caused him to jump slightly. 

“Kakashi is everything ok?” Kakashi was placed in charge of the office when Minato was away, so Minato was hoping that nothing was going wrong. Kakashi was an efficient and intelligent man, but he tended to do more reading than working at work. 

“I couldn’t remember the name of that restaurant that you were talking about a few weeks back and needed a refresher.” Minato had to think back. He then remembers one of the restaurants he would frequent when Naruto was in the hospital. 

“Ichiraku Ramen? Why do you want to know?” 

“ I have a date tomorrow night and want to take her somewhere after the art gallery.” 

“You cannot take her to Ichiraku Ramen! Take her to the Crimson Dragon, it’s nicer.” He then heard Kakashi mumble on the other end of the phone. Minato hoped that their date went well, Kakashi was too much of a recluse. He also hoped Kakashi showed up on time. 

“Alright I gotta go pick up Naruto. I’ll see you at work Monday. Oh and don’t be late.” 

Minato quickly made his way to pick up Naruto. He was looking forward to a lazy weekend. 

_______________________

Sakura stared at her closet. She had no clue what to wear. What does one wear to an art gallery? She stared at her phone. Regret overcame her as she pressed the call button. 

“What’s up Forehead?” Sakura sighed. 

“What does one wear to an art gallery and then out to dinner?” Sakura had to pull the phone away from her ear as Ino screamed. 

“Please tell me it’s Kakashi! He’s cute, right?” Ino went on a five minute rant rating all the guys she has seen recently. 

“Ino. Can we get back to me?” Sakura was getting a headache. 

“ You have to wear your black wrap dress with the gold heels. Pin your hair up. And for the love of god don’t look like a mess.” Sakura took great offense to that. She never looked like a mess, although working with kids tended to get her sticky with lots of different material. 

“Thanks Pig.” 

“I expect details tomorrow over coffee.” Sakura didn’t waste any time hanging up the phone. She made quick work of getting dressed and she was ready just on time. 

Well she thought she was ready on time. 7pm rolled by and Kakashi didn’t show up. She looked at her phone making sure she had the right time. Yep. He was going to pick her up at 7pm and it was now 745. So she waited. Sakura checked her phone multiple times. No new calls or messages. 

Then she heard the knock on her door. She wanted to yell at Kakashi for being late, but reeled it in. Instead she put a smile on her face and opened the door. 

“Yo. Sorry I’m late. Ready to go?” That’s all she got. No explanation. Sakura’s smile went tense and she nodded yes. 

________________________

The art was interesting to say the least. It definitely wasn’t her style and the artist was a little too obsessed with depicting puppets in his work. As they walked to the restaurant her phone rang. She knew she wasn’t going to go a night of being on call without someone calling her. Mei was going to owe her for taking her call tonight. She quickly excused herself before they headed in. 

“This is Dr. Haruno.” 

“Hi Dr. Haruno, it's Minato...Naruto’s father.” 

“Hello Mr. Namikaze, what is going on with Naruto this evening?” 

“He has a fever and won’t keep his formula down.” Sakura delved into the typical questions. How long has it been going on? How high has the temperature gotten? How many wet diapers? It started this morning apparently. Naruto’s temperature has gotten up to 100.6. He was eating well during the day, but for the last 2 bottles he has been throwing up. Eight wet diapers so far today. No diarrhea. 

“Has he been around anyone sick?” 

“Umm I started taking him to daycare a few hours each day. I don’t know of anyone sick there.” Sakura winced, daycares were a cesspool of germs. 

“He probably picked something up there. Give him some tylenol for his fever and see how he does after that. If he continues to throw up you can try some pedialyte. He likely caught a viral infection. If you notice any increased work of breathing, less than 2 wet diapers, I would take him to the ED or to the clinic if it is on the weekday.” 

“Thank you Dr. Haruno.” 

“No problem Mr. Namikaze. Please let me know if there is anything else.” As Sakura hung up the phone she found herself smiling. She had a feeling both would have a lot of growing over the next couple of years. 

Sakura soon entered the restaurant and joined Kakashi for their dinner. 

___________________________

It had been 3 weeks since Sakura last heard from Minato. When she got back to the office the Monday following his call she made sure the nurse called to check on them. Once Naruto got some tylenol he started taking his bottles again. His fever only lasted a day and he was back to normal. 

Sakura looked at her schedule and smiled when she saw a certain 4 month old’s name. He would be coming in later in the day. She was looking forward to seeing that mop of blonde hair. Her day passed relatively smoothly. Her last appointment for the day canceled, which meant after seeing Naruto her day would be done. Now she just had to wait. She didn’t have to wait long as she saw them check in and then get roomed. 

_________________

The last few weeks have gone better for the Adventures of Naruto and Minato. Yes Minato came up with his very own title for Naruto’s life. After the fever most things were smooth sailing. Naruto was doing well adjusting to being in daycare and to Minato’s credit he adjusted decently too. He only tried to run out of the office a couple of times to check on him. Obito and Kakashi would snicker when he tried. Rin always seemed to show up and halted his attempt to escape. 

His firm was almost done with the bid for the bank tower. The proposal started to come together nicely. As he sat in the waiting room this time it was less nerve wrecking then the first time. There was a different nurse this time who called for them. Naruto was happy babbling in Minato’s lap. They were rushed back for the vital component and placed into an exam room. 

A knock on the door made Naruto jump. 

“Well if it isn’t little Naruto. Look how big you have gotten. Mr. Namikaze it's good to see you again.” Naruto easily smiled at Dr. Haruno as she talked. Minato could see Naruto’s head move as she sat down. Dr. Haruno seemed to be solely focused on Naruto, which was refreshing. Most women just stared at him and ignored Naruto. 

“Alright any questions or concerns for today?” And with that the questions started. After the barrage of questions he watched as Dr Haruno easily picked up Naruto and started to look him over. For some reason the lack of attention he was getting was bothering him. 

“How is daycare going?” Minato realized he had zoned out. 

“Uh...daycare is going well. Aside from the fever a few weeks ago, he has not had any colds. Will he get another cold?” Minato wasn’t sure if he could handle Naruto being sick. 

“It is likely he will get another cold and more then just one. How has his sleeping been? I know last time he had problems with a cough at night.” 

“He wakes about twice at night for a bottle and then he is back to sleep. As for the cough that seems to have gone away.” Naruto started to reach for her stethoscope as she picked him up. He watched as Naruto tried to kick his legs on the table. 

“That’s good. Aright Naruto you look good. It is time for his four month shots. He can be a little fussy afterwards, so you can give him some tylenol if needed. I’ll have the nurse come in to give the shots. Mr. Naruto I will be seeing you again at 6 months of age. Try not to scare your father with pizza sauce this time.” Minato’s checks flushed as she mentioned the pizza incident. 

“We will be seeing you in 2 months Doc.” Minato watched as she left. Naruto looked at his father and giggled. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter Minato and Sakura will meet outside of the clinic! Will say Kakashi and Sakura will develop more of a friendship and not a romantic relationship.


	3. Baby Steps

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sakura and Minato meet outside of the clinic with no Naruto.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter took on a mind of its own and only covers about half of what I wanted to, oops. Hope you enjoy!

Her feet hit the pavement hard. She could feel her muscles contract allowing the blood in her to pump faster. Her heart was beating out of her chest and she could tell her face was beet red. The music in her ears drowned out some of the noises around her as she ran down the streets. This was her weekend morning ritual. Wake up, put on her running gear, and run to her heart’s content. It was one of the few times she was able to shut off her brain. Well she tried to shut off her brain. She thought back to coffee with Ino a few weeks ago. 

_ “Come on Forehead tell me how the art gallery was. Did you guys have fun afterwards?” Ino kept wiggling her eyebrows.  _

_ “The art was different. We walked around and then we got dinner. He took me home and then left. “ Sakura sipped her coffee. Allowing the aroma to fill her senses. She just couldn’t see Kakashi as more than just a friend. She couldn’t handle the fact that he was late. She understood the first time, but this time he was almost an hour late and no proper excuse. Then when she was around him it always felt off. When the highlight of the evening is talking to a patient’s father that’s a sign.  _

_ “Seriously! That’s all you're going to give me. I need more details.” _

_ “There is not much in the way of details. He was late by almost an hour. Showed up with just an ``I'm sorry'' and then we went on our date.” Sakura made sure to do her best man voice impression with the ‘I’m sorry.’  _

_ “Seriously Sakura, you need to stop finding fault with every guy you date. Don’t just focus on one small flaw.” Sakura did not see how wanting a date to be on time was a bad thing. There interests didn’t seem to mesh well.  _

_ “Plus he brought you food that day. Wasn’t that so romantic?” Sakura rolled her eyes. Yeah romantic if you get judged for being hungry and not being ashamed to eat. She did thank Kakashi profusely for the kind gesture.  _

_ “Give it more than just a couple of dates.” Sakura huffed into her coffee.  _

She was trying to look past a few hiccups in her time with Kakashi. They seemed to do well talking over text, but when it came to being in person together the click just didn’t happen. She asked him to lunch yesterday and it just keeps falling flat with him. Sakura also didn’t care for his favorite reading material, Jiraiya was a class A pervert. 

Sakura forced her legs to go faster. Her mind wasn’t supposed to be overthinking. Its only job was to help her function in her run. After running for a little while longer she looked at her watch. Five miles. She slowed to a stop. Her muscles twitched in rhythm with her music. She needed food and coffee. Sakura lived close to the downtown area and her runs usually had her circling the heart of the city. She looked around and noticed she was in one of the more hipster areas. 

A smile found its way on her face when she saw the antiqued green door to a coffee shop. It had recently opened and she had been dying to try it out. Sakura had almost thought to ask Kakashi to come with her to the shop last week but he didn’t like coffee. He also didn’t like mornings, so meeting before she had to go to work was a no go. 

The small bell on the top corner of the door chimed as she entered. The shop was decently packed for 9am on a Saturday. She easily made her way through the store to the counter. ‘Hmm all of this looks so good. I want to order everything.’ One of the reasons Sakura ran so much was because she enjoyed eating. Most days she ate so healthy a fitness nut would say to take a step back. However, those days were to balance out when all she wanted was carbs, sugar, candy, and chocolate. Yes, Sakura at times ate like the elf her patients thought she was. 

“I’ll have a White Chocolate Mocha with a pump of raspberry sauce and an order of blueberry pancakes, please.” Sakura could feel her blood sugar start to spike with her order, but she didn’t care. She wanted her sugar and no one will stand in her way. Her usual black coffee just wouldn’t cut it today. 

After paying she took her number and looked for a seat. She scanned the coffee shop looking for an open seat. She hoped to get one by the windows because the thought of drinking her sugar and people watching really appealed to her. However, she paused when she saw a familiar mess of blonde hair. 

“Mr. Namikaze?” 

_____________________________

Over the last few weeks Minato felt like he was going at turbo speed. They were finally going to submit the proposal for the bank tower and he really wanted to get it. His desire to beat everyone else is what brought him into work on a Saturday morning. Well Naruto waking up at 6am this morning and then not wanting to go back to sleep also played a role in the decision as well. 

Minato dressed Naruto in a simple outfit with a baby Yoda top and light jacket. It was such a beautiful morning that Minato strapped Naruto in a baby carrier and walked to his office downtown. The streets were peaceful as he strolled down the streets. He passed a few runners, saw some people on their stoops getting their morning paper. Mornings were one of his favorite times of the day. He always enjoyed the stillness that came with mornings. How things didn’t have to be rushed. Kushina could never understand his love for mornings. 

_ “Why can’t you just go back to sleep. There are more hours in the day that you could be awake. Be lazy with me.”  _

Minato loved their lazy mornings, but he didn’t want to waste a day when there was so much work to be done. He soon found himself walking into the lobby of the building his office was in. 

“Morning Mr. Namikaze. You just can’t escape this place it seems.” The security officer gave him a warm greeting. Minato just smiled and held Naruto closer to him. 

“Is that Naruto?” The security officer, Jin, had come over to take a peak. He would never forget all the conversations he had with Jin when he found out he was going to be a father. Jin had 3 older children and provided a lot of advice. However, it was one of his lowest mornings that Jin was there for him. 

_ It had been a month since Naruto was born and Minato went into work on a Sunday morning. He just sat in his office. For the first time tears fell from his eyes.  _

_ “I don’t know how I am going to do this.” He just wanted to wallow in his misery. Minato wanted to be alone, but Jin was checking the floors on his daily rounds.  _

_ “Mr. Namikaze is everything alright?” Minato wanted to say that no nothing was alright. Everything was wrong. How the hell was he going to raise a child on his own. Kushina would be able to do it without batting an eye. Minato didn’t read all of the baby books. He didn’t look at preschools and daycares before Naruto came into the world. Minato could barely put a diaper on in the baby classes.  _

_ Jin seemed to read his thoughts and he felt a hand on his shoulder.  _

_ “I’m sorry about Kushina. She was a wonderful woman.” Jin paused. Minato found the tears falling faster.  _

_ “Mr. Namikaze I have 3 kids of my own. I know you can raise Naruto and give him a wonderful life. My late wife died 2 years after our last was born. I found myself the sole caretaker of 3 rambunctious and moody girls. There are a lot of twists and turns in the life of parenting. The pain of losing a spouse will lessen overtime, but you will see her whenever you look into the eyes of your boy. I still see my wife in everything my girls do.” _

_ Minato knew what it was like to lose his parents. It crushed him that Naruto would never have his mother.  _

_ “Do you ever feel like you were never enough?”  _

_ “All the time. But let me tell you something. As long as you love him that is more than enough.”  _

“Yes. Decided he should start earning money early for all the diapers we go through.” Jin gave him a deep laugh. They talked briefly and after 10 minutes, 8 of which Jin held Naruto and almost didn’t let him go, Minato ventured to his office. The moment he stepped in he realized one important fact. He forgot something for Naruto to sit in. ‘ _ Crap’ _ Why didn’t he think further ahead! Minato looked around his office. He really wanted to work, but didn’t want to keep the heavy baby carrier on him. He strolled over to his desk trying not to panic. As he sat down in his chair he looked around. He then realized he had a suit jacket on the back of his door. He can lay the jacket out on the floor and Naruto could lay on that! Plus Naruto was holding his fox toy so that should provide enough entertainment for Minato to get some work done. 

Within a few short minutes Minato was going over the proposal for the millionth time. Apparently in the middle of working Naruto fell asleep. It wasn’t until a knock on his office door happened that Minato realized the time. It was now 830am and he had been working for the last hour. He looked up to see who was at work today.

“Rin? Obito? What are you two doing here?” The couple were dressed casually both in jeans and simple shirts. Minato laughed when he realized they were in matching shirts. He really wanted Obito to propose soon. The last time they talked he was planning on it in the next couple of months. 

“No Minato the important question is why are you at work on a Saturday morning?” Rin was taping her foot and hands on her hips. 

“This proposal…”

“The proposal is perfect and will be submitted first thing Monday morning.” It was Obito who cut him off. Minato wanted to protest. 

“Don’t even start Minato. You need a break, so here is what is going to happen. Obito and I will take Naruto for the morning. You will go enjoy some time to yourself. Heaven knows that you have not taken a break since Naruto was born.” Minato tried to butt in, but Rin kept going. 

“And we at least won’t get pizza sauce on Naruto.” Rin was now pulling him out of his chair. Obito had gathered Naruto from the floor, he somehow strapped the baby carrier to his chest already. Soon the foursome were in the elevator heading to the lobby. 

“Have a good weekend guys.” Jin happily waved as they walked through the lobby. 

“You too Jin and thanks for the text.” Obito waved enthusiastically. 

“What text?” Minato didn’t like what he was thinking. “Did you have Jin keep tabs on me?” 

Rin and Obito looked at each other and simultaneously answered. “We plead the 5th.” 

Minato tried to follow them, but Rin wasn’t having it. “Go find a coffee shop or something to sit in.” When did Rin become so bossy?

So Minato ended up slowly strolling down the streets of downtown. He realized that he was needing another caffeine hit and could use some food as well. His attention was caught by a new coffee shop with an eclectic feel. ‘This will do.’ Once he saw the menu the fate was sealed. He ordered a simple plan late and a lavender vanilla scone. He soon found his place in one of the booths by the windows. It didn’t take too long before he pulled out his iPad and started to read, Ready Player One. 

He tried to shut his worrying mind off. Soon Minato became engrossed in the novel; he didn’t see a certain pink haired doctor walk in, not until he heard her sing-song voice. 

“Mr. Namikaze.” Minato looked up and all the air left his lungs. Standing before him was Dr. Haruno in running shorts and a sleeveless racer back exercise top. 

“Dr. Haruno. How are you?” His heart was pounding so hard he thought it would pop out of his chest. 

“Sakura.” He just stared at her. 

“Excuse me.” Minato was confused. 

“Please call me Sakura. We are outside of work and I feel weird when people call me a doctor outside of work. And I am doing good Mr. Namikaze. How are you?” Minato felt like an idiot. She was saying to call her by her first name. He really wanted to hit his head on the table. 

“Minato. Please call me Minato then. I am doing well.” Sakura smiled at him. He then realized she was holding a number card and he also realized there were no seats available. Minato weighed the pros and cons of asking what he was about to. In the end he didn’t want Sakura to leave. 

“Please join me. There are no other open seats and it looks like you have ordered.” He could tell she was hesitant. The moment she sat across from him he felt the small victory. 

Sakura wasn’t sure what possessed her to sit down with Mr. Namikaze. Minato, she corrected in her head. Although as she thought about it, it was the logical choice. He had an empty seat and she needed to eat. He looked more relaxed so relaxed when he was reading she hated bothering him. As she looked around she realized someone was missing. 

“Where’s Naruto?” Sakura found herself a little disappointed the other familiar mop of blonde hair wasn’t present. There was something about Naruto’s smile that tugged at her heart. He was sure to be a heartbreaker. 

“Two of my friends took him for the morning. They wanted to give me a break.” Minato almost felt jealous of his own son. How many women would want to be in this position? As much as he was annoyed at not being the main focus it warmed him on the inside that Naruto’s pediatrician cared so much for him. 

“That’s so sweet of them. They won’t eat pizza while holding him I hope.” Her smirk caused his stomach to summersault. 

“No, they are much more responsible. I’m sure Rin wants it as practice for their future. Although Obito has to propose first.” Minato was surprised at the ease of carrying a conversation with her. Their conversation was interrupted when Sakura’s order arrived. He had never seen someone so happy to see food. He couldn’t help but chuckle at her kid in the candy store look on her face. 

The smell of her coffee and pancakes filled her nostrils. She could smell the warm blueberries from the pancakes and a hint of lemon. Her coffee was strong, but the white chocolate and raspberry cut through some of the bitter notes as she took her fist sip. She wasted no time drizzling the pancakes with the blueberry syrup. She had to slow her actions remembering the last time she scarfed down food in front of Kakashi. All of Sakura’s self control went to stopping herself from devouring everything. 

Minato could see the struggle in her eyes as she slowly ate her food. Looking at her attire she likely spent the morning working out and was likely to be starving. 

“You don’t have to hold back eating your food in front of me. What were you doing this morning?” Sakura was touched by his words. 

“I went for one of my runs, so I am very hungry.” She didn’t fully unleash all her enthusiasm onto her pancakes, but did pick up the pace. They were so flaky and melted in her mouth, worth every calorie. They sat in a comfortable silence as Sakura ate and Minato read. Sakura felt like the two names she heard were familiar, but didn’t know from where. 

Halfway through her food her stomach was happy enough to slow down. She then took in the appearance of the man she was sitting with. The first time she met him she realized how drop dead gorgeous he was, he still is. It’s no wonder why all the nurses swoon for him. 

Soon they were parting ways. Sakura could only make it through half of her coffee, but was able to get it in a to-go cup with some black coffee added to it. 

“Thank you for letting me sit with you Mr...Minato. Tell Naruto I said hi.” Just like that he watched Sakura walk away. 

Minato texted Rin to see where they were. His nerves were on end until she texted back. Relief rushed over him once she said they were back home. Rin had a spare set of keys to his home and wanted Naruto to be in a familiar environment. 

It was a quick walk back home. The moment Minato walked into his home he took out his phone to take a picture. Obito was sprawled out on the couch, Rin nestled into him, and Naurto played on Obito’s chest. Rin heard the snap of his phone and looked up. 

“Minato! You’re back. How was your break?” Rin easily navigated over Obito and Naruto to get up. Minato thought back to his time with Sakura. 

“It was just what I needed. Thank you for strong arming me into it.” Naruto startled to babble as he heard his father’s voice. Minato wasted no time in picking him up. Obito yawned and stretched. 

“We should better get going. I expect to be babysitting more often.” Rin gave Minato a quick hug and kicked Obito as they walked out the door. 

Minato sat down on his couch, Naruto on his knee. He bounced him up and down. After being in the coffee shop he realized how quiet his home was. 

“You will never guess who I ran into today.” Naruto just tilted his head to the side and smiled. 

“Dr. Haruno says hi.” 

__________________________

The energy in the office was chaotic. They had just submitted the proposal and knew time would move at a snail's pace until they heard. It could be today or in the next couple of weeks. Minato wanted to throw up. He couldn’t think about all the what ifs, so started to check on the progress of their other buildings. 

Currently they were working on a couple of restaurants for the Akimichi family, the Uhiha’s were wanting a revamped police station, and the Nara’s wanted a second building for their accounting firm. He also had that strange job from Nagato from a group called Akatsuki. Minato still didn’t know what the group did. All he got from Nagato was that the group represented a variety of different interests in a variety of areas. 

Lunch was eaten at his desk as he worked through the hour. He didn’t want to stop. If he stopped he would just worry about that stupid proposal for Sarutobi International Bank. Minato looked up and saw Kakashi and Obito fooling around. Those two were only a couple of years younger than him, but acted like toddlers. At least Rin had a decent head on her shoulders. 

He was pulled out his thoughts when his secretary called him. It was the Sarutobi group. They were calling already. They must have looked at the building proposal, laughed, and then threw it in the garbage. 

“This is Minato.” His hands started to sweat. 

“Minato, my boy. This is Hiruzen Sarutobi. I just wanted to tell you we got a lot of different architecture firms submitting some top notch building proposals.” Yep here came the rejection. 

“Your group’s proposal was such an easy standout we didn’t have to debate for long. This was one of the smoothest meetings we have had for our buildings. Typically we take at least a month to decide.” Minato’s jaw dropped. Did Hiruzen just say…

“Congratulations Minato. Your firm has been chosen to build our newest tower. My office will send over the details in the next couple of days.” 

“Tha…” He had to cough to clear his voice. “Thank you sir. I look forward to working with you.” Minato sat back as he hung up the phone. His mind was still processing what just happened. When he looked up he saw his staff looking at him. He got up slowly from his desk and walked out to talk to them. 

Kakashi and Obito stopped fooling around. Rin had gone back to her own job after visiting Obito for lunch. He took in the faces of his staff. 

“I’m sure you all would like to know what that call was about. As you probably heard, that was Hiruzen Sarutobi who just called. He wanted to inform us…” Minato paused wanting to build the dramatic effect. “He wanted to tell us we got the job! We will be building their newest bank tower.” Cheers soon erupted. Obito looked like he was about to have a heart attack. 

“We need to celebrate. What do you think boss, how about Friday?” Obito was bouncing up and down. Minato thought about the idea. His staff deserved to celebrate the news. 

“That sounds good. I’ll see if one of Choza’s restaurants could cater for us. Obito, I expect Rin to be there. Kakashi try not to be too late.” Minato went to walk away when he heard Obito speak. 

“Come on Kakashi you have to bring the woman you have been seeing. Rin and I are dying to meet her. “ Wait Kakashi was seeing someone! How did he not know about this? Minato turned around and Kakashi was sending texts to someone. As Minato walked around his staff letting them know about the party he soon heard Kakashi’s phone ring. Minato didn’t care to listen to the conversation, but wondered who this mystery woman could be. 

___________________________

Sakura walked into the office Monday morning more refreshed than she had been in months. She felt so energized that she went for a run this morning. Usually she waited till evening to run, but with the endorphins released this morning she needed to switch to morning. Seeing that her schedule was fully booked didn’t even bother her. Bring on all of the antibiotics seeking parents for their child’s viral infection and teenage girls with abdominal pain. 

It seemed like time flew because the next thing Sakura knew she was seeing her last patient. As she walked back to her office she saw she had messages from Kakashi. His last message said to give him a call when she could. She wondered what he wanted to talk about. Sakura prepared herself for ‘the talk’ as she called him. 

“Hey Kakashi. It’s Sakura.” She was slightly surprised when she heard his voice having an excitement in it she never heard before. 

“Sakura thanks for getting back to me. I was wanting to know what your plans are for Friday night.” That was not the question she was expecting. 

“I don’t have any at the moment.” Before she could continue Kakashi cut in. 

“How would you feel about coming to a work party with me on Friday. The firm I work with just got this big job and the boss wants to celebrate. I was wanting to bring you with me.” Sakura’s heart warmed at him wanting her to come with him. 

“I would love to go with you. Let me know the time and if yo…”

“Great I will pick you up at 8.” Sakura could hear people celebrating in the background. 

“I’ll see you then.” Sakura sighed as she hung up the phone. Mei happened to be walking by as she sighed. 

“What’s with the heavy sigh?” Sakura looked at her coworker. She was drop dead gorgeous, long reddish brown hair and green eyes. Sakra couldn’t understand how she was still single. 

“Oh I’m just debating how late my date will be picking me up Friday night.” Sakura thought she would play it safe and plan for him to be 30 minutes late. 

“I would kill for a guy to be late, it would give me more time to get ready. I’m never ready in time. Do you want me to cover your call shift that night? I think it would be fair since you covered for me a month or so ago.” Sakura forgot she was supposed to be on call. She was thrilled that Mei offered to take the shift without being asked. 

“That would be amazing.” Now all Sakura had to do was figure out what to wear. Mei bid her a good night as they both headed out. 

___________________________

Sakura stared at herself in the mirror. It was currently 820 and Kakashi wasn’t here yet. She had just finished her hair and makeup. After talking with Ino she decided to do a side french braid in her hair and then gathered the rest into a ponytail. She kept her makeup in neutral tones, but used her shimmery eyeshadow palette, giving her a grey smokey eye. It was now time to put on her dress. 

She had gone with Ino yesterday after work to pick out something. Sakura wasn’t fully sure about the dress code for this event, so wanted something that could be dressy or more casual if needed. They had found a deep red off the shoulder fit n flare dress. She was going to pair it with her silver wedges. She wasn’t going to wear a necklace, but decided on drop earrings that were silver tear drops. Just as Sakura was putting on her heels her doorbell rang. 

“Ready to go?” Kakashi looked amazing in his simple black dress slacks and white dress shirt. At least her outfit went with his. Sakura didn’t even care to bring up the fact that he was late, again. 

“Yep, all ready.” 

Soon they were entering his office building and Sakura was blown away by the lobby. Arched ceilings with metal beams. There were skylights allowing for natural light to come in. They took the elevator up to the 15 floor. As they got closer Sakura could hear that the party was in full swing. 

“My friends are looking forward to meeting you.” Kakashi had looped his arm through hers. 

“I’m looking forward to meeting them as well.” Kakashi and Sakura entered the party. There were trays of food being walked around by some waiters. She could also see a buffet set up along the windows. Kakashi navigated her around the party. He was looking for two of his closest friends. 

“Kakashi! You showed up and only 45 minutes late.” A man with black hair and eyes was talking, the first thing she noticed were his kind eyes and smile. He was about as tall as Kakashi.

“Oh is this Sakura?” Kakashi untwined their arms and placed his hand on her back. 

“Yes, this is Sakura. Sakura this is Obito.” Sakura paused, that was the name Minato mentioned. It then clicked in her brain. The two who were watching Naruto were also Kakashi’s best friends. That’s why the names were so familiar. 

“Nice to meet you.” Obito’s grin was from ear to ear. Soon another person joined them. She had medium brown hair in a long bob and hazel eyes. The woman gave Obito a peck on the cheek. Sakura found Obito’s blush endearing. 

“You must be Rin. I’m Sakura. It’s nice to meet you.” Rin seemed shocked that Sakura knew her name, but was soon shaking her hand vigorously. 

“Oh it’s so good to meet you.” Soon the four were making the rounds at the party. Sakura enjoyed talking with Rin. They found out they had a lot in common with Rin working as a psychologist and Sakura a pediatrician. It was watching Obito and Rin interact that made Sakura realize she saw Kakashi more as a friend than anything else. 

“Hey Kakashi has the boss man meet Sakura yet?” The moment Kakashi shook his head no Obito was leading them to another area of the room. Sakura froze when she saw him. Kakashi’s boss was Naruto’s father. 

“Hey Minato. Kakashi showed up and he brought a date.” Minato looked over to the group. The moment Sakura entered the party Minato saw her. She looked breathtaking in her dress. That familiar feeling in his stomach returned. He could feel his heart beat faster. However, it was like a bucket of cold water was thrown on him when he saw she was with Kakashi. He tried to ignore the two as they walked around the party. Sakura attracted the attention of many of the staff and other attendants. One reason was that she came with Kakashi. The other was everyone was taken by her looks. It was not everyday a person with candy hair and dazzling emeralds for eyes came into the office. 

As those eyes focused on him everything else faded away. Sakura then opened her mouth. “Mr. Namikaze it's good to see you again.” Sakura was conflicted on how to address Minato. She thought the best course of action would be to take the professional approach. 

“Wait, do you two know each other.” It was Kakashi who actually decided to speak. He looked perplexed. 

“Dr. Haruno is Naruto’s pediatrician.” Rin looked giddy beside Obito. 

“Congratulations on the new job.” Sakura wasn’t sure what to do. She could feel all eyes on her and it was making her have a slight freak out. Soon Rin was telling stories of babysitting Naruto, which Sakura smiled at. They were then going to the buffet table and sat down to talk. Obito was part of the Uchiha family and decided to go into design over the police force. Sakura then got into a story of how she knew Shisui from childhood. Minato was friends with Fugaku and Mikoto, who had recently given birth to her second son. Itachi was an adorable eight year old who she had only seen a couple of times. 

Sakura found herself needing some fresh air, which meant she would have to go down to the lobby. 

“Kakashi I need some fresh air. I’m going to head downstairs for a little bit and I’ll be back up.” As she went to stand up Kakashi stopped her. 

“We have a balcony we use at times. Let me show it to you. That way we don’t have to go all the way downstairs.” They two excused themselves. The balcony had a stunning view of the city and the crisp air was like a welcoming hug after being in a room with so many people. Kakashi just stood beside her. 

“Kakashi, I have been thinking about what we are and…” She had to pause. Sakura wasn’t sure if this was the best time to bring it up, but she feared she would lose her nerve later. 

“I have enjoyed spending time with you, but I feel like we would work better as friends.” Sakura rushed the part after the but. She could feel herself internally wince, hating how cliche she just sounded. However, she was speaking the truth about being friends with him, especially after meeting Obito and Rin. He seemed to let out a sigh...of relief. 

“I have enjoyed spending time with you as well, but am glad I am not the only one who thinks we would work better as friends.” Sakura couldn’t contain herself as she hugged Kakashi. His chuckle sounded deep from his chest. She felt him place a soft kiss on the crown of her head. They went back to the party both feeling lighter. 

“By the way I have someone who I think you would really like. She is a coworker of mine.” 

____________________

Minato watched as they walked away. The feeling of jealousy was nothing like how he felt when Sakura just paid attention to Naruto. Minato could understand that. This however. This was something different. He didn’t know much about Sakura, but enjoyed being around her. Aside from Obito, Rin, Kakashi, and Naruto she was a welcome relief to the darkness that surrounded him so often recently. 

So Minato followed them, discreetly of course. He couldn’t hear their conversation, but saw their embrace. His heart felt heavy. Then he had to turn away when Kakashi kissed her head. Minato went back to the table to sit back down. He watched as Rin happily ate her dessert. 

“Do you think your friend would still want to go for that date?” Minato had to move on, one baby step at a time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Naruto is about 5 months old at the end of this chapter. Please let me know what you think, feedback is appreciated. 
> 
> Next chapter: Minato's date, Naruto's well child check


	4. dates, engagments, and 6 month well check

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minato decides that he wants to find happiness again. Rin and Obito have some news. Naruto is due for another clinic visit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think. This was going to be longer, but decided to split it.

Minato watched as the clothes went flying from his closet. Rin and Obito were going to watch Naruto while he went on a ...date. The word date was still strange. No matter if he spoke it outloud or thought it. A date. He thought he was done with going on dates for the rest of his life. A pang went through his heart. He was supposed to grow old with Kushina. Maybe he shouldn’t go on the date tonight. Kushina’s smile flashed in his mind. She would know what to say at this moment. When her red hair started to morph into a lighter shade, he had to clear his mind. 

“No. No. Why do you even have this? No. Burn this!” He took great offense to his Hawaiian shirt being tossed in the burn pile, it went splendidly with his palm tree shorts. More clothes were thrown from his closet. He was happy Rin took pity on him and decided to help, but this was just getting ridiculous. 

“Minato, hurry up in there. Your hair doesn’t need more gel.” Minato just groaned as he peaked in his closet. Then something occurred to him. 

“Hey! I don’t use gel in my hair.” Rin popped into his room and watched him. She decided to take pity on him and shoved him out of the way. 

“Here put these on.” Rin was soon shoving clothes in his arms and pushing him back in his bathroom to change. He had to agree with Rin on the outfit she found. It looked nice, but also like he wasn’t trying hard. She had found a light grey button down shirt and paired it with his dark jeans. 

After he put on the clothes picked out by Rin he looked in the mirror. Not bad. He would be meeting Rin’s friend at a restaurant. Minato wasn’t familiar with what Rin’s friend picked out, but he wasn’t a picky eater. He rolled up his sleeves as he tried to remember her name. All that came to his mind was pink and silver. 

“Rin, what was the name of your friend again?” He was prepared for the verbal lashing that was to come and was surprised when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked in Rin’s hazel eyes. 

“I know you are nervous, so I’m going to ask one more time. Are you sure this is what you want to do?” Rin couldn’t believe it when he asked about going on a date with Masae. She didn’t want to push him and understood if he just wanted to be with Naruto. 

Minato was silent. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to do this, but he had to. 

“I’m sure.” He felt Rin embrace him. She pulled away and took a step back, circling him. 

“Well I must say I am damn good at picking out an outfit. Now you will be meeting Masae in 30 minutes. Don’t be late. She has black hair and amber eyes. From my interactions with her at work she is lovely. I told you she is working on getting her degree in nursing while volunteering at the hospital.” Masae, that’s right. If she had Rin’s seal of approval that’s all that mattered to him. 

Soon Rin was shoving Minato out his front door. “Now we will take care of Naruto. You go have some fun.” 

___________________

Minato wanted to pace back and forth as he waited in front of the restaurant: Chateau Jade. From the menu displayed outside he wanted to grab his wallet and run away. He should have been the one to suggest a restaurant. Minato didn’t realize someone was standing behind him, well not until they spoke his name and caused him to jump. 

“Minato?” He hoped she didn’t see him jump. Minato turned to come face to face with a woman who stood his height. As he looked down he noticed she was wearing shoes that could be used as a weapon. _How in the world does she walk in those?_

“Yes. You must be Mesae, it’s nice to meet you.” She had long jet black hair that fell to her mid back. He felt like he was under dressed the moment he realized she was wearing a body hugging cocktail dress. It looked to be a gold glittering material. She gave him a smile that could put a beauty pageant contestant to shame. He almost clinched his heart when he saw a couple go into the restaurant with a young baby. He wished he could have brought Naruto. 

Mesae who thought he was watching her smirked and flipped her hair over her shoulder. “Do you want to head in? I’m looking forward to getting to know you better. Rin only says great things about you.” 

“That sounds good. Rin has said great things about you as well. I heard you are in nursing school.” Minato needed to focus. He glanced up at the sky saying a silent prayer. All he could think of was the color jade and then blue. 

“Yes, I have one more year left.” 

They walked up to the hostess, who gave Minato a sideways look. “Two for Namikaze, please.” 

“Right this way sir.” Minato couldn’t help but look around the building. It had beautiful stone pillars, but the classic design was covered up by gaudy paint colors and decorations. Minato remembered his manors right before Mesae sat down and pulled out her chair for her. 

“Can I get you two started with anything to drink?” Minato was cut off by Mesae before he could speak. 

“ We will have two glasses of your pinot noir.” The hostess skipped away before Minato could protest. He didn’t really care for wine. 

“Rin told me you own an architect firm! That must be so rewarding.” She started to trail her foot up and down his leg. 

“It’s a lot of work, but I get to work with some amazing people. Do you know what field you want to go into when you are done with school?” Minato was busy parrouzing the menu when he heard a baby cry. His head shot up immediately, only to remember Naruto was back home. 

“Ugh babies. I didn’t think they allowed children in here.” Minato had to keep his jaw from dropping. Did she really just say that?

“I want to be a nurse for a plastic surgery clinic, but really anything that doesn’t have a lot of kids would be ideal.” Did she not know he had a child? He was just going to busy himself with trying to figure out what to eat. Pain de campagne? Who would just order plain bread at a restaurant! His eyes kept wandering to the dessert section. Le bonne nuit - a dark chocolate cake with raspberry puree, sounded amazing. They had macarons made in house - every flavor you could imagine. A blossom’s dream sounded delectable: strawberry macaroons with lemon curd filling. There was also the classic pain au chocolat. Yep he wanted to skip straight to dessert. 

“Have you been here before?” He decided to ignore her comment about children. 

“I have. It was on another date, a surgeon I met at work.” Red flags were going off in Minato’s head. 

“How are the desserts?” 

“Oh, I wouldn't know. I don’t care for sweets.” Well there went his hopes of splitting a couple of the desserts. Maybe he would just come back for dessert on a different day. 

“I think I am going to get the omlette du fromage avec épinard.” Minato looked at the menu. She was going to get a cheese omelette with spinach, why? He decided to go with the Ratatouille, nice and classic. 

Minato looked around the restaurant. The parents of the infant had gotten him to go back to sleep. As he looked closer he realized how tired they looked, he and Kushina probably would have looked like that too. 

“So what made you go into nursing school.” 

“I wanted to be surrounded by motivated people. It doesn’t hurt that there are a lot of attractive single doctors.” He thought of pink and green. She had a point there. The baby started to cry again and he saw the two parents flustered. 

“They should kick that couple out of here, the crying is interfering with the aumbnace.” He saw the other patrains of the restaurant give the couple dirty looks as well. This just wouldn’t do. 

“Excuse me. I’ll be back.” Minato went over to the couple. 

“Let me take him for a little bit. I’ll just walk around the restaurant with him, so you can enjoy your dinner.” The couple looked like he sported two heads. 

“I have an almost 6 month old at home. You guys deserve a nice meal. This little one will remain in your line of sight the entire time.” Soon he was holding a 3 month old little girl. He walked back and forth, bouncing her up and down. When she went to sleep he took her over to his table. Mesae had a sour look on her face. 

“Why do you have that?” 

“The parents needed a break. My son is almost 6 months old, so I know how much the couple probably want some time out of their house.” 

“You have a son? I thought Rin was joking.” Minato’s eyebrow started to twitch. 

“You know Mesae I don’t think this is going to work out. I think you should leave.” Minato didn’t want to deal with her anymore. He was going to have the waiter bag up his meal and take it home. 

“I haven’t had my food yet!” 

“I will have them pack mine up and you are welcome to eat your spinach omelette, but I will not be present.” Minato got up and left. He found the waiter and told him that he would like his food to go. He paid for his date’s meal as well, along with the meal for the new parents. He gave them back their beautiful baby girl. Minato gave her one last look before he took his food and left. 

He walked back home. It seemed Rin and Obito weren't expecting him back so soon. 

“Did it go that bad?” Minato collapsed on the sofa. 

“She didn’t like kids and also alluded to be a gold digger who only went to nursing school to bag a rich doctor. So yes, it went that bad.” He pinched the bridge of his nose and just wanted to forget this night ever happened. 

“Well I guess this as good of a time as any to tell you this. Obito asked me to marry him yesterday and I said yes!” Minato immediately popped open his eyes and was jumping up to hug two of his favorite people. 

“That’s spectacular! How did he finally pop the question?” He watched as Obito looked to the ground. 

“Well I was trying to plan out this big proposal--” 

“Oh Obito it was perfect just the way it was. I came home last night from a long day and Obito was making dinner. Well it was more like he was burning dinner.” Rin started to laugh as Obito stammered. 

“I was not burning dinner. It’s called blackened chicken.” 

“Sure it is, well anyway. He starts holding up the chicken to show off the seasoning and I just lose it. In the midst of my laughing he gets a serious look on his face. The next thing I know he is asking me to marry him.” 

“I just saw this beautiful, intelligent woman standing before me, and all I could think of was how I wanted to marry her. It was so spur of the moment the ring is still at the jewelers.” 

“Congratulations guys! I’m so happy for you.” 

“We are going to have an engagement party in a couple of weeks to celebrate. Obito and I expect both you and Naruto to be there.” Minato couldn’t seem to stop smiling as they talked. He wanted to experience this happiness again. It may take him some time, but he wanted to find it. 

He bid the two goodbye and went to check on Naruto. Minato took in Nauto’s features. He slept peacefully in his blanket. His little guy would be turning 6 months old soon. Minato groaned at the thought. It meant that Naruto had to go in for his well child check. He was going to come face to face with Sakura again. Then another feeling overcame him, dread. He was going to have to see her at the engagement party with Kakashi. 

________________________

Sakura watched as Mei floated around like she was on cloud nine. She and Kakashi had been on at least 3 dates each week over the last two weeks. They were completely smitten with each other. Mei had a glow about her Sakura had never seen before. Kakashi had shown up for lunch a couple of times as well and always had a ridiculous smile on his face. Sakura was thankful there was no awkwardness from them going out a few times. 

The ping of her phone brought her out of her thoughts. It was Rin, they had exchanged numbers after meeting. Sakura wanted to squeal with excitement. Soon she saw that Rin was calling her. 

“Congratulations to the lovely bride to be!” Rin’s giggles filtered through the phone. 

“Aww thank you. What are you doing next Saturday?” Sakura mentally went through her schedule. 

“I will be visiting my parents back home. I haven’t seen them in 6 months, so I’m looking forward to it.” Fall was settling in and she was looking forward to warm cider and apple picking. 

“Oh.” Sakura could see the disappointment on Rin’s face. “I wanted to invite you to my engagement party. 

“I am sad I will be missing it. How about I take you and Obito out to celebrate sometime? My treat of course.” 

“I guess that would be ok. When do you want to meet again to get coffee?” 

“How about tomorrow morning? It would be a great way to start off Friday.” Sakura and Rin had already met up once to have coffee. Rin was disappointed that things didn’t work out with Kakashi, but Sakura assured her that she would love Mei. 

“That sounds wonderful. I’ll see you in the morning.” Sakura was happy for Rin and Mei. As she leaned back in her office chair and looked at her schedule she felt the loneliness overcome her. It had been over a year since she was last in a serious relationship. Itami and her just didn’t work out. ‘It will happen. I just need to give it time.’ 

Her afternoon was packed and she didn’t have the time to dwell on her love life. Her afternoon passed in a blurr. One of her patients ended up having appendicitis, which led to them going to the hospital to be admitted for an appendectomy. Then she had her first child with bronchiolitis, it was going to be a long winter if it was starting this soon. It was time to dust off the old anticipatory guidance. Make sure to suction the nose, use nasal saline, if not tolerating formula or breast milk give pedialyte, and make sure to treat fevers. Nope 99 was not a fever. 

Sakura crashed the moment she got home and was looking forward to coffee in the morning. 

__________________

Minato was not in a good mood the moment he woke up. For the last few weeks he has heard nothing but Obito egging Kakashi on about the woman he was dating. Minato should be happy that Kakashi has found someone that he likes, but for some reason it just put Minato in a sour mood. He strolled into the office. Jin gave him a friendly good morning and all Minato could do was muster enough energy to nood and slightly smile. He was going to leave early today to take Naruto to his 6 month well child check. 

Naruto was doing so well it warmed Minato. Minato finally acclimated to not being with Naruto every hour of the day. He was one of the staff’s favorites at daycare. He thankfully hasn't caught any of the bugs going around yet, but Minato was going to have to brace himself for Naruto’s first major illness. 

Minato was shocked when he saw that Kakashi was already in the office, working away at his desk. 

“Kakahi why are you here so early? Is the world coming to an end?” Obito started laughing.

“Kakashi is excited for his date tonight. He is going to ask her to be his girlfriend.” Obito was walking around with his hand over his heart. “They grow up so fast.” Kakashi just rolled his eyes and Obito wiped away a fake tear. 

“I just don’t want to be late.” Minato saw the look in his eyes and he felt regret. He was a horrible person, being upset with Kakashi finding happiness with Sakura. He didn’t even know Sakura very well. 

“Kakashi please don’t try and kill Obito here, I don’t want to pay someone to clean up the mess. Now I’m going to work. I leave early to take Naruto to his appointment this afternoon.” Minato just wanted this day over with. 

Time flew as Minato touched base with all their clients making sure the projects were progressing at an appropriate pace. His alarm went off on his phone alerting him about the appointment in 45 minutes. He should have enough time to get Naruto from daycare and show up before his appointment. He quickly made it out of the office without talking to anyone. 

The crisp air helped to clear his mind as he walked to his car. He needed to get rid of the black cloud hovering over his head. The moment he saw Naruto’s smile when he picked him up all his worries went away. Naruto was the only person who mattered in his life. 

“Ready for your check up little man?” Naruto started moving his hands up and down shaking his rattle. 

“Have a good evening Minato.” The daycare staff waved the duo goodbye. Minato strapped Naruto into his rear facing car seat and took a deep breath. In just a few short moments he was already parking in the clinic’s parking lot. 

Everything passed in a blurr as he checked Naruto in and was then whisked into an exam room. A laugh could be heard outside the door and his heart started to pound in his chest. His hands were shaking. 

“Well if it isn’t the most handsome little man come to see me. You just made my day.” Minato wished she was talking about him. The look in her eyes was directed to one person in the room and it wasn’t him. Naruto just laughed and went to reach for her. 

“Oh are you going to sit on my lap for the visit? Is that ok Mr. Namikaze?” It should be illegal for someone to have such a warm smile and a voice that could put anyone at ease. 

“I don’t think Naruto would have it any other way.” Sakura yet again scoped Naruto out of his arms and sat down with him at her computer. 

“Look at the head control and sitting all by yourself. I think someone might be ready for some solid foods.” Minato wanted her to look at him so badly. His internal prayers were answered when she shifted her attention. 

“Do you have any concerns for today?” _Yes. Why the hell are you dating Kakashi?_ Was what he wanted to say. 

“When can he have solid foods?” 

“Typically around 6 months of age is when we start introducing solid foods. You can do the dissolvable puffs and pureed foods. We recommend introducing one new food every couple of days. That is to make sure if he reacts to one we can know which one. If you introduce two new foods close to each other and he has a reaction then it will be hard figuring out which one he should avoid.” Minato nodded his head in agreement. He then watched as Sakura lifted Naruto up and down. Naruto was giggling up a storm and trying to grab her stethoscope everytime he got close to her. 

“How is daycare going?” 

“Good. There have been a couple of sick kids in his room, but he hasn’t gotten anything himself. 

“I’ll give you a handout about what to look for at his age. It also has recommendations for nasal suctioning and dosing of tylenol and ibuprofen. Since he is now 6 months of age he can have ibuprofen for fevers. Do you have any albuterol on hand?”

“Albuterol?” Minato just stared into her eyes as she looked at him. He started to get lost in those glistening emeralds. 

“Since he is on flovent and has chronic lung disease related to his prematurity he may have a harder time with viral infections. It would be good to have albuterol on hand if you notice him having wheezing or increased work of breathing. It can be given every 4-6 hours at home.” Minato prayed he didn’t need to worry about any of that. 

“I don’t think I have that at home.” Sakura just gave him a soft smile. 

“I’ll send a prescription to the pharmacy for you. It would also be good to start baby proofing as he becomes more mobile.” Minato continued to listen as Sakura went through all of the anticipatory guidance. 

“Alright, lastly it’s time for vaccines mister.” Sakura gave Naruto back to him. 

“I heard Rin and Obito have gotten engaged, it's so exciting. Rin had been so excited when I talked to her. I’ll send the nurse in for the vaccines. Next check up is at 9 months of age, thankfully he will not need any vaccines at that time. Let us know if you have any questions.” Minato watched Sakura leave. He just wanted to bang his head against the wall thinking how next Saturday he would have to deal with seeing Sakura at Obito and Rin’s engagement party. 

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think: comments are appreciated. There will be more Sakura and Minato interaction in the next chapter.


	5. Enagement party and first illness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sakura is excited to spend the weekend with her parents, which means she will have to miss Rin and Obito's engagement party. Minato deals with a sick Naruto, while coming to wrong conclusions when Kakashi brings Mei to the party.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally got this done, work and other projects have been taking over my life. 
> 
> For some reason Minato wallows in this chapter a bit.

The weekend passed too quickly for Sakura. She normally felt refreshed going into Monday, but Ino deciding to have a girl’s night sucked all the energy out of her. One good thing that came out of it was getting to spend time with Hinata. Hinata gushed about Kiba, the two had been dating for a little over 6 months. They were able to talk Ino out of going to the bar and had a spa night at home. Spa nights were typically relaxing, but Ino kept hounding Sakura about not trying harder with Kakashi. 

Sakura needed a strong cup of coffee to get her through her week. The only good thing about it being Monday was that she was getting closer to seeing her parents. She decided to venture to that coffee shop she went to a few weeks ago. A good cup of coffee and a pastry from the cafe will help jump start her week. 

The coffee shop was busy as people stumbled in needing their caffeine hit. Sakura stood in line. As she went to stand in line she noticed the person in front of her. 

“Mr. Namikaze?” Eye’s as deep as the ocean looked at her. She then noticed another air of blue eyes. 

“And Naruto! Here for a cup of coffee this morning?” Sakura couldn’t help but smile at Naruto. 

“Dr. Haruno. Yes we are making a stop before this little guy has to go to daycare.” 

“Mr. Namikaze I told you to call me Sakura.” Sakura really didn’t like him being so formal with her. 

“Then you need to call me Minato, even at Naruto’s check ups.” Sakura’s heart started to pound. She wasn’t sure if she felt comfortable dropping formality with his name. She told herself it was Naruto’s smile that made her heart flutter, no his father’s. 

“Minato please call me Sakura. How was your weekend?” Minato saw her eyeing Naruto and she squealed when he handed him over. He was just too cute. 

“Spent a lot of the time working and baby proofing the house. He got to try his first food on Saturday. Do you want to see a picture?” All she had to do was nod her head and he was showing off Naruto. 

Minato loved the sound of her giggles as she looked at Naruto being covered in pureed apples. Her laugh mixing with Naruto’s had to be one of the most wonderful sounds. 

“Looks like he liked the apples. Just wait till you can have caramel apples. Just think next year you could be munching down on some caramel apples.” Minato laughed at her obsession with the caramel apples. 

“I take it you like this time of year.” Her blush matched her hair. 

“I will be seeing my parents this weekend and am looking forward to all of the fall festivals back home. I had chosen this weekend to go home knowing it was the big fall kick off. Sadly I’ll be missing Rin and Obtito’s party.” Sakura’s face went from elated when talking about visiting her parents to sadden when she mentioned missing the party. He wouldn’t have to see her with Kakashi this weekend. The elation he felt with this relation brought on disgust. He should be happy for the two. Minato grounded himself. He was going to ask how the two were doing, but in the seconds it took him to ready himself Sakura spoke. 

“Are your parents over the moon with Naruto? I’m sure they spoil him rotten.” Sakura lifted Naruto over her head and brought him back down. Her arms were going to be sore tomorrow. She looked at Minato’s face and saw how his smile had dropped. 

“My parents passed away in a car accident when I was in high school.” Sakura felt like an ass. 

“I’m so sorry.” Before she could continue Minato was ready to order. 

“I’ll take a medium cappuccino and a oatmeal bar to go ple--”

“Could you add a large americano and raspberry lemon scone to go please. It’ll be my treat.” Sakura nudged Minato out of the way so she could pay. She wouldn’t let Minato get a word in as she handed her card over. 

Minato just froze. Her hand was soft as she pushed him out of the way. His skin still tingled from her touch. He just watched as she continued to play with Naruto, everything else fell away to the waste-side. Time stood still as he watched the two together, it just seemed...right. Sakura meanwhile was trying to get her mind off of Minato and Naruto was the best way to distract herself. Sakura shifted Naruto to her hip as she grabbed her scone. 

“Do you want Naruto back?” She didn’t want to let him go. Minato looked like he was in deep contemplation and she startled him when she spoke. 

“I can take the little guy back. The coffee should be ready soon and then I can get him off to daycare.” Part of Sakura wanted to be with them longer, but knew that she and Minato had places to be. As she handed Naruto over, their orders were ready. She picked up both so Minato could focus on Naruto. She watched them get into their car as she took her first sip. All she had to do was get through the week and she would be able to clear her head back home. 

_________________

The week passed fairly quickly, although Naruto started to have a runny nose come Thursday. Minato would constantly check for a fever, but Naruto continued to eat well and didn’t seem bothered by it. It was now Friday and Minato was counting down for a weekend at home. He decided to get a babysitter for Saturday night because of Naruto’s runny nose. He really didn’t want to expose him to more people (more like their germs).

Over the last few days he had been trying to ask Kakashi how things were going with Sakura, but every time he went to open his mouth no words came out. He didn’t understand why he couldn’t bring himself to be happy for the couple. He barely knew Sakura. All he knew about her was that she liked the fall, had a sweet tooth, liked mornings and running, had a smile that could melt even the coldest of hearts, and she cared for her patients. She was just Naruto’s doctor. That was it. 

The moment he looked up from his work he saw Kakashi ruffling Obito’’s hair. They both were heading out for the day. Minato started to gather his things as well. 

“See you tomorrow night boss! Make sure to bring the good wine that Rin likes.” He just shook his head. 

_____________

Sakura waved goodbye to her last patient for the day and nearly jumped for joy. She finished up her notes in record time and looked at the bag she had packed last night. It made more sense to leave directly from work then going back to her house and then leaving. The clinic was closer to the interstate and she wanted to leave ASAP. It was a three hour drive back home and she could already taste the warm apple cider. 

Mei was finishing up her work and Sakura found herself stopping by her office. 

“Are you excited for the engagement party tomorrow?” Mei’s smile was dazzling as she looked up. 

“Yes! I found a wonderful dress and can’t wait to meet more of Kakashi’s friends. He has talked about his boss a lot, but I have yet to meet him. I believe you take care of his son.” Sakura’s heart started to warm at the thought of the two blondes. 

“Naruto is Mr. Namikaze’s son. I’m sure you two will hit it off, he seems like a nice guy and cares about his son deeply.” Sakura mentally patted herself on her back.  _ That sounded professional. _

“Rin and Obito have been wonderful, but it is nerve racking meeting his boss.” 

“You’ll have to tell me all the details on Monday.” Sakura wanted to talk more with Mei, but really wanted to start her drive. Mei seemed to have read her mind and shooed her away. 

“Have a wonderful time with your parents. Now get out of here.” 

Sakura watched as Konoha became smaller in her rear-view mirror. She focused herself on the road ahead of her and not why her heart squeezed every time she thought of Minato. 

__________________

Minato woke up in a bad mood. For some reason he didn’t have a good feeling about today. Naruto had started breathing a little faster last night causing him to not sleep as well, him not Naruto. Naruto slept like a baby. He gave Naruto his inhaler before bed and cleaned out his nose with a ...NoseFrida (disgusting, but highly effective). He also made sure that the humidifier was running as well. 

Naruto slept peacefully in his crib as he busied himself with making coffee for the morning. He decided it was going to be a day to watch TV with Naruto nestled into his side. He would then get ready for Obito and Rin’s engagement party and spend the minimum amount of time there. 

The smell of coffee started to perk up his mood. It seemed like the warmth of the coffee mug started to spread into his bones. Today was going to be a good day, he just needed to adjust his mood. 

_____________

Sakura bounced out of bed ready for her day. Last night she was welcomed into the warm embrace of her father. She ignored her mother’s comment about not having a man. Her father was the one to shush her mother. 

_ “Mebeki. Sakura has more important things in her life than wasting her precious time on someone who wouldn’t be good enough for her. Now let's get you some apple cider. I just made it last night. And before you ask, the tickets for the fall festival have already been bought.”  _

_ Her mother rolled her eyes at her father’s antics, but she soon went from her father’s hug to her mother’s.  _

_ “Now before your father takes all the credit we will also be starting the day tomorrow with a bike ride through the town, with a stop at the bakery you love so much. Do you know they now have a doughnut named after you? It is only in the spring: the cherry blossom. It is a strawberry rhubarb custard in a lemon doughnut, dusted with pink powdered sugar. “ _

_ “I didn’t know that! I will have to come back when they start to make it.”  _

The laid back night with her parents was exactly what she needed. She was able to get her mind off of some of the things in Konoha. She couldn’t wait for her bike ride around the town (and donuts, of course). 

After that they would come back to the house. Have a light lunch and then go to the apple orchard. The festival started at 5, which gave them plenty of time. She was going to go through the corn maze, then spend too much money on all the rigged games, and then eat to her heart's content (she wanted all the fried and sugary food). She made a mental note to add a run in tomorrow morning before she left to go back to the city. 

She just hoped Obito and Rin’s engagement party went smoothly. 

__________________________

The cough sounded horrible. Naruto woke up this morning with the sniffles and a mild cough, which has now morphed into a harsh little sound. He shouldn’t go to the party tonight. Between putting saline in Naruto’s nose and using the suction device he was breathing comfortably and still eating. However, he didn’t want to subject a babysitter to his sick child. 

Minato went to dial the babysitter when he heard a knock on the door. 

“Hello, Mr. Namikaze. I’m here to watch little Naruto.” 

“Oh Moegi, I was just getting ready to call you. Naruto has come down with a cold and don’t think I will need your services tonight. Sorry for you to come all the way here.” 

Moegi just smiled at him. “Mr. Namikaze, I feel comfortable taking care of little Naruto. I have been in the accelerated nursing program at my high school, where I get to follow and help out the nurses.” 

Minato was torn. Maybe he could go support Obito and Rin for an hour and come back. He looked down at his outfit and realized it was suitable for tonight. Naruto had spit up on him earlier in the day and he decided to change into his outfit for tonight. 

“I’ll be back in an hour. Let me know if i need to come back sooner.” Minato gathered his keys, phone, and wallet before heading out the door. He glanced at Naruto who had nuzzled into Moegi’s shoulder. 

It seemed like in a matter of minutes he was parked outside of Rin and Obito’s house. He took in all the cars up and down the street. Minato was shocked to find that Kakashi’s was parked in the driveway. Kakashi never got to a gathering early. Deep down inside Minato was hoping to show up and leave before Kakashi got there. 

_ Deep breath in. Hold it and release.  _ He could do this. Minato was going to go into the party and celebrate two of his closest friends. Not only that, but he was going to ask Kakashi how his relationship with Sakura was going. He could do this. One more centering breath and he was on the move. 

People were filtering in and out of the house. It was a beautiful fall night and some were sitting on the porch talking. 

“Minato!!! You made it.” The wind was knocked out of him as Obito slapped him on his back. 

“How is Naruto doing?” Rin was always being considerate. 

“His cough seems to be getting worse. He is at least able to keep his feeds down, but I’ll probably head out early to get back to him.” Rin placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder and gave him a squeeze. 

“Well I expect you to at least relax for the next hour before you head out. Oh and make sure to say hi to Kakashi. Can you believe he got here so early! Well by his standards.” 

The smell of barbecue ribs wafted across his nose causing his stomach to speak, very loudly. As he ventured to the table he had to stop a few times to talk to some of his other friends and workers. His mouth watered as the table came into view. Ribs, flatbread, cheese platter, fruit, vegetables, some soups and grilled cheese in tiny shooters. He didn’t realize how hungry he was. As he piled his plate full of various foods he paused once he got to the drinks. 

It looked like Rin had decided to also have some fall treats as well. There was hot apple cider next to the typical offerings. He then realized that there were also small servings of pumpkin bread pudding with a caramel sauce on top and apple turnovers. His heart stopped. A soft melodic laugh crossed his mind with eyes that shamed the emeralds made by mother nature. His heart shouldn’t be pulling like this. 

Guilt overtook him, as he heard Kakashi’s laugh permeating through the air. Kakashi was happy and Minato had the love of his life once already. Minato squared his shoulders, after he scarfed down some (more like 9) ribs, and decided to just pull the trigger and talk to Kakashi. 

Minato clutched his cider to his chest as he walked over to the silver haired man. The sparkle is his eyes was something he hadn’t seen in a long time, maybe ever. 

“How is your night treating you?” Minato patted himself on his back. 

“It's been good. Actually I am going to see a play after this, that’s why we got here so early.” Minato couldn’t figure out the we part. 

“You are going to a play. When have you ever gone to a play?” 

“Mei has been wanting to see a new play that has come to town. One of her friends from college is the lead. “ Minato’s mind was blank. Who the hell was Mei?  _ Calm down there is a logical explanation for this .  _

Before Minato could speak a woman wrapped her arms around Kakashi’s shoulders. 

“There you are handsome. Are you about ready to go?” Kakashi was cheating on Sakura. Minato’s blood started to boil. He wanted to scream. How could Kakashi do this? How could Rin and Obito be ok with this. Rin adored Sakura. They spent at least one night a week hanging out. 

Minato’s heart plummeted. Was Kakashi with the woman when Sakura was with Rin? Sakura seemed so happy. Who was going to tell her this? 

“Oh you must be Minato! I have heard so much about you. It’s good to finally meet you.” A delicate hand reached out to shake his. He wanted to bat it away from him. Instead he extended his own. 

“Nice to meet you too. I actually have to go. I don’t want to leave Naruto with the babysitter for too long with him being sick. “ Minato walked away. His hunger was forgotten. He wanted to punch something. No not something, someone. 

Kakashi just looked at Minato like he had grown another head as he walked away. 

“I thought you said he was nice. I don’t think he likes me very much.” Kakashi gave Mei a hug. “I’ll go talk to him, maybe Naruto being sick has him in a mood.” He kissed the crown of her head before he parted 

Minato was outside when he heard Kakashi’s voice. 

“Minato, hey wait up!” He resisted the urge to turn and punch when he felt a hand on his shoulder. 

“Are you doing ok? You don’t seem like yourself. The more I think about it you have been off for the last few weeks. Is Naruto ok?” 

“Naruto is sick and I want to get home to him.” Minato took some deep calming breaths. He couldn’t hold it in anymore. 

“What game do you think you are playing Kakashi?”

“What are you talking about Minato? I’m not playing a game. I wanted to make sure you are alright. You acted strangely with Mei. She really wanted to meet you..” 

“She wanted to meet me. What about your girlfriend? What about Sakura.” 

“What about Sakura? I think she is visiting her parents this weekend.” 

“Yes. She is visiting her parents and you are with Mei, that doesn't seem wrong to you?” Kakashi wondered how he knew that Sakura was seeing her parents. 

“I don’t get what Sakura has to do with how you are acting. Did you somehow have a bad experience with Mei at the clinic and are now holding a grudge against her?” 

“What clinic?” Kakashi was starting to get worried for Minato. Had he not paid any attention to any of the conversations over the last couple of weeks. 

“The clinic she works at. She works with Sakura …” Minato’s head snapped at that, he clenched his fist. Before he could think his fist was hurling towards Kakashi. 

“How could you cheat on Sakura, with a coworker of hers none the less. I thought you were better than that Kakashi.” Minato watched as Kakashi cradled his jaw. 

“Minato I think you are confused.” 

“I don’t want to hear it, Kakashi. I’m going home to my son, he needs me right now.” 

Kakashi watched as his boss and long time friend walked away. He could hear the people behind him whispering. Kakashi wanted to shake Minato by the shoulders. He wanted to fight back. However, the look of complete hurt stopped him. Minato was hurting. Somehow he fell for Sakura and didn’t realize they weren’t dating anymore. 

It all started to make sense now. Ever since he brought Sakura to the work party and the two decided to be just friends Minato had been acting weird. He must have thought that this entire time they were dating. Whenever Kakashi would try to bring up his relationship Minato would walk away and by doing so never realized that it was Mei who was his girlfriend and not Sakura. 

This was just all kinds of messed up. 

“Oh my god Kakashi. Are you ok? We all heard shouting and then the next thing I saw was him punching you. What happened?” 

Mei’s gentle hands helped take the sting away. 

“It seems there has been a misunderstanding. I’ll talk to him once he cools down, he needs to be with Naruto right now.” He really needed to talk some sense into the man. Minato was hurting. Kakashi hadn’t seen him so hurt since Kushina passed away. 

_____________________

  
  


Minato’s hand was swollen and stung. He could feel the bags under his eyes. His night was just one big pile of shit after the other. He turned his phone off after multiple calls from Kakashi, Rin, and Obito. He just couldn’t deal with them at the moment. 

Naruto’s cough continued to worsen throughout the night. Moegi had said he required some extra suctioning when she watched him. It seemed every hour his cough just got worse. He had needed to give those nebulizer treatments twice overnight. Minato was worried. Naruto just continued to breath faster and faster. Normally he would call the clinic’s after hours number, but what if he got her. 

So his morning consisted of more breathing treatments and sucking out Naruto’s nose. He was starting to get more worried as he refused to take a bottle anymore. 

It was 3 in the afternoon when he heard a knock on his door. All he wanted to do was curl up in a little ball and cry. He couldn’t understand why. Why did Kuhsina have to pass? Why couldn’t he get a pinkette out of his mind? Why couldn’t life just give him one break? It seemed like even in high school life wanted to beat him down. 

The knock got louder. He just wanted them to leave. However, he knew who was behind the door the moment he heard a yell. The lock started to click and soon Rin was making her way to him. 

“What the hell Minato. Why are you ignoring all of us? You have a lot of explaining to do. Kakashi wouldn’t say much after you left.” 

“Rin, please leave. Naruto is getting worse and I really need to care for my son.” 

“I’m not leaving until you explain what has gotten into you.” Rin stood before him, resolute. He wanted to pull his hair out. He had more important things to deal with at the moment. 

“I need to try and give Naruto his bottle, he isn’t eating.” Soon Rin was pushing him out of the way. 

“Let me look at him.” Rin made her way over to the pack n play that was in the living room and unwrapped Naruto. His belly was moving faster and pulling in under his ribs. 

“Why haven’t you called the clinic or taken him in?” 

“I’m handling it.” 

“No you are not handling it. You have been off for weeks now and I am sick of it.” Minato was tired of hearing that. He ran a hand through his hair and winced as his hand got stuck in some dried food or vomit residue in his hair. 

“Don’t give me that look. Here is what you are going to do. You are going to sit down and have a cup of tea. I will call someone to help. Hopefully they can come over to look at him and before they get here you will tell me what the hell has been going on with you.” 

“Who are you calling?” He had to lean his head back for the headache that was starting to build. 

“Sakura. I don’t think calling Mei would be good right now.” Minato went blank for a few minutes. The next thing he knew Rin was hanging up the phone. 

“Are you going to tell Sakura about Mei and Kakashi?” How could you be ok with all of this?” 

“Minato what do you mean tell Sakura about Mei and Kakashi?” It was starting to click in Rin’s head. Men are idiots. 

“Kakashi is cheating on Sakura. Are you going to tell her?” 

“Minato, listen carefully. Kakashi is not cheating on Sakura. He is in a relationship with Mei. Sakura is the one who actually set them up.” 

Minato’s heart started to pound. It couldn’t be. He then realized he never asked either one of them how the other was doing. How could he have missed this? 

“Now go take a quick shower before she gets here. You smell horrible.” He couldn’t form words. His mind was too stunned. Electricity shot up his arm from his bruised hand. One thing was certain he owed Kakashi a huge apology. Minato has never felt more idiotic in his life. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like Kakashi gave up easily during the argument, but because he realized what was happening with Minato. Kakashi realized his friend was hurting. Everyone is sick of Minato's shit at the end. Lets see what happens when Sakura comes for a home visit in the next chapter. 
> 
> Let me know what you think! Reviews are appreciated.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you think! Reviews are appreciated. I don't know how many chapters this will be, but it will be mostly fluff.


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